Cook Islands national football team
The national football team of the Cook Islands is the selection team of the Pacific island nation of the Cook Islands. It is one of the most unsuccessful teams in the world.
The Cook Islands are a member of the world football governing body FIFA and the regional association OFC. So far, it's the team not been able to qualify for a World Cup. In the OFC Nations Cup would retire at two-time participation of each in the preliminary round.
The Cook Islands at the World Cup
The first official FIFA tournament for the Cook Islands was to qualify for the Football World Cup 1998 in France. In the Polynesian group of the Oceania zone the team played against Samoa (1:2) and Tonga (0:2). However, after two losses, the team was eliminated.
The qualification for the FIFA World Cup 2002 ended for the Cook Islands in the first round. In group 2, the national team lost all group matches against New Zealand ( 0-2), Solomon Islands (1:9), Tahiti ( 0:6 ) and Vanuatu ( 1:8 ) and finally finished the last place in the standings, which the resignation to had a row. The only moderate success was scarce 0-2 defeat against New Zealand on 8 June 2001 in Auckland ( New Zealand).
The first round of the Football World Cup 2006 in Germany ended for the national team of the Cook Islands also without a single victory against New Caledonia ( 0:8 ), Solomon Islands ( 0:5 ), Tahiti (0:2) and Tonga (1:2), a goal of 1:17 and a last place in the standings in the first round.
In qualifying for the World Cup 2010 in South Africa, the team was eliminated in the first round. The Cook Islands played in a group with Fiji ( 0:4 ), New Caledonia (0:3), Tahiti ( 0:1) and Tuvalu and occupied at the end of the standings four. Counter Tuvalu could enter 4-1 the only victory in the World Cup qualifier in the history of the country on 1 September 2007 in Apia.
Balance of the Cook Islands in the World Cup qualifiers:
Squad
The following players had at the Games of the Pacific Games in the squad:
Coach
- Alex Cook Islands Napa (1996-1998)
- Germany Jens Friedemann (1998-2000)
- England Alan Taylor (2000-2001)
- Cook Islands Luigi McKeown (2001-2004)
- Australia Tim Jerks (2004 -)
Participation in World Cups
Participations in the OFC Nations Cup
Attendance at the South Pacific Games and Pacific
The Cook Islands participated only sporadically and never were able to survive the first round.